The Ragtag Team
by Charlie Anne Lines
Summary: They meet on the train taking them to Hogwarts. They're first years, they haven't been sorted yet and without any house rivalry, they hate each other. The Ragtag Team: A Cheryl/Jughead Hogwarts AU. Set in the Harry Potter universe and set during the books. Events of the Riverdale Characters loosely fit in with the events in the books/movies. Also on Ao3, don't like, don't read.


All Rights go to the appropriate owners. If been honoured by the support for Raven Locks & Cherry Pop, so I decided to write another story that will be less chapters, I'm hoping it will inspire vents for Raven Locks & Cherry Pop as well.

Shout out to: hydrurga leptonyx for the constructive criticism, I'm working on longer chapters promise and I'll get that barley changed :)

First Year: Snakes Never Truly Shed Their Skin.

They meet on the train taking them to Hogwarts. They're first years, they haven't been sorted yet and without any house rivalry, they hate each other.

Jughead's stood next to Archie at the trolley, arms laden with sweets of every kind, Liquorice Wands, Pumpkin Pasties, Cauldron Cakes and of course Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Jelly-beans, when she walks past.

Cheryl holds Jason's hand as she leads him back to their carriage. Both of their uniforms are pristine, crisp lines, freshly pressed that morning, when she glances back at him to smile.

That's when they crash together. Jughead turns at the exact moment Cheryl turns her head and their bodies collide together in a mass of crimson braids and a dark grey knitted crown beanie. When they eventually sit up from the fall, Cheryl crumpled against a fallen Jason, Jughead fallen against the wall of the train do they really get a look at each other.

He's all long limbs and skinny frame, disproportionate and to small for his orang-utan arms, black hair falling against his forehead and finger curled around the hem of his too big uniform robes. She's tiny, even for an eleven year old, her red hair is braided in neat plaits, hazel eyes large on her round face blaring with anger and most importantly, at least to her, the pristine uniform on her slight frame is covered in chunks of orange pumpkin and sticky brown liquorice.

She screams at him for a good fifteen minutes after it happens, really its until the train comes to a stop of the platform in Hogsmeade. Her brother tries to hold her back and Archie stand in front of him protectively but it doesn't make a difference, the words she shout have cut deep and the lingering flame of hatred bubbles away at the pit of Jughead stomach.

Cheryl glares at him for the entire walk to the boats, the whole boat ride to the castle, and even when a kind fourth year has has used the Scourgify charm on her uniform for her, she glares at him all throughout the Sorting.

Her blazing gaze zeroes into him through it all. When Archie is sorted into Gryffindor, the red headed girl herself and her brother into Slytherin, their friend Betty is sorted into Gryffindor next to Archie. It stays on him when he himself has been sorted into Ravenclaw and moves to the appropriate table, and when eventually one Veronica Lodge is sorted into Gryffindor, making fast friends with Archie and Betty. Even with the hot stare burning through his skin, he watches the three Gryffindors, and has never felt more alone in his life.

The year goes on and both Jughead and Cheryl forget about their spat on the train. Cheryl and Jason spend time in the Slytherin dorms practising simple spells, trying to read ahead, Cheryl wants to be the best and Jason would do anything to help her. Jughead spends his time with Archie and Betty, but it feels different with Veronica there, he's no longer the third musketeer, she is, and he feels like an outsider next to the people he's known all his life.

It's not until the Potter boy, the one in their year group, and his two friends discover He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is still alive and after the boy who had defeated him last time, that the hatred between himself and Cheryl starts again.

She's stood under a tree by the Black Lake, arguing with her brother, her hands are moving wildly in the air as she speaks, fiery hair flying in the wind, unbound. Jason is shaking his head at his sister, fiery hair ruffling in the wind like a dancing flame. As Jughead gets closer he notices the tears streaming down Cheryl's face. It's puffy and red but that doesn't stop the harsh glare and baring of her teeth any less vicious when she turns to look at him after he'd made eye contact with Jason. He scoffs at her, blinking as though the act doesn't bother him, Cheryl's face softens slightly before the harsh exterior is put back and Jughead's walking away, leaving the twins to argue behind him.

When he's made his way back into his dorm room, he pulls the letter his owl Herbert had brought him at breakfast from his robes. He had tried ignoring it, but the letter had felt like a grip on his heart, distracting him for most of the day. It's from his father, the parchment heavy and stamped with the Jones family crest at the bottom, he supposes that the two snakes wrapped together around a wand is fitting for a family of mostly Slytherins dating back generations. Despite the fancy paper, his family does not come from money, and he's fairly certain any money they come into is procured by shady means, his father's handwriting is chicken scratch at best and the ink he wrote with still glistens slightly in the fire light.

Its the fourth letter he's had in the days since the Potter boy's ordeal and Jughead's sure it just a repeat of what had been said in the last letters. _He's back, If the Order comes back I'm joining the again, Your Mother and Sister_ _are in hiding, I can't tell you where, I will protect you Jug._ He'd been worried the first time he had gotten the letter, worried of his father's past, that perhaps he had once been a Death Eater and was ready to return to his business, but his faith in his father was lacking. His Father had been part of the Order Of The Phoenix during the first war, had fought for the good guys alongside his childhood best friend Fred Andrews, Archie's father.

His addiction was a result of the war, drowning his sorrows seemed to be the only way of living with the pain from war. However, there were times when the Firewhiskey hadn't always clouded his father's mind, times in his childhood when they had fun, when Jellybean was born, named after their mother's nickname for her growing child, now he figured, if his father was ready to fight, he'd seen the seriousness of the situation, he mind wasn't clouded so he had to be off of the alcohol.

One thing was for sure, another war was coming, and Jughead wasn't ready for it.

"You can't be serious!" She yells at Jason, tears streaming down her face to the point that his figure is but a blur in front of her. Jason sighs and nods, his hair falling slightly to brush against his forehead. The tears stop and Cheryl growls low in her throat before hitting his arm repeatedly.

"Mummy and Daddy say he's back, so does Potter, so he's back. Daddy says they've been called back to work for him and he's happy about it, so much so that he wants to teach us to be like him, to follow The Dark Lord and follow in our parents steps as Death Eaters," She growls out in between punches to her brother's arm, crimson nails digging into her palm. Jason raises a slender eyebrow, its a dare, a questionable _"So What?"_

Cheryl takes a deep breath, palms flat out at her sides as she calms herself. "I don't want to do it either," she admits, "But Daddy will expect you to do this, he'll hurt you if you don't Jason," she mutters quietly, head bowing, tears once again falling against her cheeks, dampening her eyelashes.

"I won't do it," Jason say firmly and she meets his eyes, hands throwing themselves up in exasperation, she's just trying to help him, make sure Daddy doesn't hurt him or worse. When she focuses again her brother gaze lingers over her shoulder, she turns, glare sharp, teeth bared and she meets the gaze of the black haired boy from the train. She makes eye contact with his blue-green eyes and he scoffs, blinking like it doesn't bother him, her jaw unhinges a little, her glare makes the bravest of their fellow students cower. Cheryl shrugs off the fact that his lack of fear bothers her before throwing her mask back up and turning back towards Jason as he trudges back up to the castle.

Her eyes soften when she meets his, the face of the person she knows best in the world, the face of the boy who would do anything to protect her and decides it's her turn to protect him. "I'll do it on my own then, try and keep Mummy and Daddy from pressuring you into this," she says gently, her words carry with the wind, washing over Jason. He sends a thankful smile in her direction before he pulls her into the circle of his arms.

Head tucked under her brother's chin, long hair caught between their pressed bodies, Cheryl knows one thing for certain, war is coming, and she's fighting on a side that failed the last time around, but she will do anything in her power to protect her brother.


End file.
